U.  S.  DEPARTS  AGRICULTURE 

OFFICE  OF  EXPERIMENT  STATIONS— FARMERS'  INSTITUTE  LECTURE  10  (Rev.). 
A.  C.  TRUE,  Director. 


SYLLABI 

OF 

ILLUSTRATED  LECTURE 

ON  THE 

PRODUCTION  AND  MARKETING  OF 
EGGS  AND  FOWLS. 


By 

JAMES  DRYDEN, 

Professor  of  Poultry  Husbandry,  Oregon  Agricultural  Qpllege,  Corvallis,  Ortg. 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING    OFFICE 
1910. 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATED  LECTURES. 
Farm' 

■  inn! 
th»  with  47  lantern  sli  wart  and 

II 

a  bus  of  Illustrated  Lecture  oi 

Farm  *  of  Illustrated  Lecture  on  Profit.1. 

■  y  F.    B.    Mumford. 

ilabus  of  Illustrated  L<  ^ilage  and  Silo 

for  the  £  d  with  50  lantern  \.  M. 

labua  of  Illusti  tials  of  Suc- 

tentation,  accompanied  with  32  lantern  elides. 
Thorne.    Pp.  24.     1905. 

labus  of  Illustrated  Lecture  on  Roads  and  Road 
Building  anied  with  41  lantern  slides.  '  By  the  Office  of  Public  Roads, 

Agriculture.     Pp.  16. 
Farm-  cture  8.     Syllabus  of  Illustrated  Lecture  on  Farm  Architecture, 

•mpanied  with  48  lantern  By  Elmina  T.  Wilson.     Pp.  I 

Farmers'  Institi  re  9.    Syllabus  of  Illustrated  Lecture  on  To":  wing, 

acc<  vith  46  lantern  By  J.  N.  Harper.     Pp.  15.     1907. 


t26S  [flSUed  April  ."),  1910. 

U.S.  DEPARTMENT  OF  AGRICULTURE 

OFFICE  OF  EXPERIMENT  STATIONS-FARMERS'  INSTITUTE  LECTURE  10  (Rev.). 

A.   C.   TRUE.    Direct...- 


SYLLABUS 

OF 

ILLUSTRATED  LECTURE 

ON  THE 

PRODUCTION  AND  MARKETING  OF 
EGGS  AND  FOWLS. 

By 

JAMES  DRYDEX. 

Professor  of  Poultry  Husbandry.  Oregon  Agricultural  College,  Corvallis,  Oreg. 


WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT    PRINTING    OFFICE. 

1910. 


(EFA70RY  NOTE. 


This  revised  syllabus  of  a  lecture  upon  the  production  and  market- 
ing of  eggs  and  fowls,  by  James  Dryden,  professor  of  poultry  hus- 
bandry, Oregon  Agricultural  College  and  Experiment  Station,  is 
accompanied  by  4f>  views  illustrating  this  topic.  The  syllabus  and 
views  have  been  prepared  for  the  purpose  of  aiding  farmers3  institute 
lecturers  in  their  presentation  of  this  subject  before  institute  audiences. 

The  numbers  in  the  margins  of  [the  pages  of  the  syllabus  refer  to 
similar  numbers  on   the    lantern   slides  and  to  their  Legends  as  given 
in  the  Appendix:  those  in  the  body  of  the  text  refer  to  the  lie 
authorities  and  references,  page  20. 

In  order  that  those  using  the  lecture  may  have  opportunity  to  fully 
acquaint  themselves  with  the  subject,  references  to  its  recent  litera- 
ture are  given  in  the  Appendix. 


Recommended  for  publication. 
A.  C.  True.  Director. 


John   Hamilton, 
Farmer^  InstituU  Specialist. 


Publication  authorized. 
James  Wilson, 

Secretary  of  AgricuUu 

Washington,  D.  C  March  15.  1910. 

(2) 


IHE  PRODUCTION  AND  MARKETING  OF  EGGS 

AND  FOWLS. 


By  James  Drydrn. 


INTRODUCTION. 

Probably  no  other  branch  of  agriculture  interests  a  greater 
number  of  people  than  poultry  keeping.  Soil  or  climatic  con- 
ditions do  not  prescribe  limits  for  the  poultiy  industry.  The 
poultryman  is  found  in  every  State  and  in  every  county  of 
the  Union,  and  the  farm  without  some  poultry  is  almost  an 
anomaly.  The  farmer,  however,  does  not  monopolize  the 
poultry  business.  The  villager  with  his  back  lot,  the  suburban 
resident  of  the  city,  the  needy  invalid  unable  to  work  at  hard 
labor,  the  woman  in  search  of  a  livelihood,  the  man  of  wealth 
on  his  country  estate,  the  practical  farmer  on  his  farm — all 
have  an  interest  in  fowls,  either  as  a  means  of  livelihood,  a 
mental  diversion,  a  pleasure,  or  a  profit. 

Since  the  last  United  States  census  was  taken  the  commer- 
cial importance  of  the  poultiy  industry  has  been  better  under- 
stood. The  census  returns  showed  a  value  of  poultry  and  eggs 
produced  on  the  farms  that  year  of  approximately  8300,000,000, 
without  including  the  amount  produced  in  towns  and  villages. 
(Ref.  1,  p.  630.)  Since  then  prices  of  poultry  products  have 
advanced,  and  the  industry  has  been  growing.  Taking  these 
factors  into  consideration,  the  estimate  of  the  value  of  poultry 
products  for  1908  of  over  £600,000,000,  made  by  the  United 
States  Department  of  Agriculture,  is  undoubtedly  conservative. 
(Ref.  2.  p.  15.)  The}'  equaled  the  value  of  the  wheat  crop  of 
the  United  States  for  1908.  and  exceeded  the  value  of  all  the 
coal  and  petroleum  produced  in  1902.     (Ref.  3.  p.  44.) 

EGG  PRODUCTION. 

USES  OF  EGGS. 

The  uses  of  the  egg  are  varied.  As  a  food  it  is  unexcelled. 
The  invalid  and  the  strong  use  the  egg  without  question  as  to 
its  high  nutritive  qualities,  and  it  has  never  yet  been  success- 

(3) 


View. 


t'ull\  substituted  or  adulterated.  In  composition  eggs  resemble 
moderately  lean  beef  and  tish.  Eight  average  eggs  will  make 
a  pound.  Eggs  are  extensively  used  in  the  arts,  as  in  fur- 
nishing tin-  albumen  with  which  photographic  paper  is  coated. 

A  writer  many  year-  ago  -aid:    "Out  of  bugs  and  worms  and 

seeds  and  what  it  can  pick  and  sdratch  Prom  the  waste  of 
nature's  laboratory  the  ben  prepares  the  fair  white  egg    one  of 

the  most  delirious  morsels  to  the  human  palate  and  one  to  till 
the  heart  of  man  with  loving  kindn< 

QUALITY  AND  SIZE  OF  EGGS. 

Eggs  vary  great  U    in   flavor  and  quality.     Undesirable 

flavors    may    he    detected     in    the    egg    after    feeding    the    hen> 

heavily  on  food-  of  strong  or  high  flavor.  If  \'ed  in  sufficient 
quantity,  beef  scrap  will  give  an  odor  to  the  egg.  It  i>  im- 
portant that  no  beef  Bcrap  be  fed  except  of  good  quality. 
Onions  will  give  an   undesirable   flavor   to   th<  ,nd    if  a 

sufficient  quantity  he  eaten  by  the  hen  the  eggs  will  he  unfit  for 
use.  (Kef.  I.  p.  505.)  There  will  he  no  perceptible  flavor, 
however,  from  either  onion-  or  good  beef  -crap  if  fed  in  normal 
quantities.  Only  when  hens  have  been  starved  on  green 
and  animal  food  and  then  given  all  they  will  eat  of  either  onions 
or  heed"  scrap  will  any  flavor  from  these  foods  he  detected  in 
the  egg. 

(//)  It  has  been  shown  that  certain  food-  affect  the  color  of 
the  Qgg\  feeding  alfalfa  liberally  will  give  yolks  of  high  color. 
(Ref.  5,  p.  174.)  Pale  color  of  yolk  usually  indicates  a  lack  of 
green  food. 

(c)  The  size  of  the  egg  i-  influenced  by  factors  under  the 
control  of  the  poultryman.  The  breed  should  not  always  be 
blamed  for  small  eggs.  Eggs  from  fowls  having  free  range 
where  worm-,  insects,  and  green  food  were  obtained  weighed 
more  than  eggs  from  similar  hens  kept  in  small  yard-.  (Ref. »'». 
j).  207.)  Eggs  for  the  fancy  market  should  weigh  not  Less  than 
22  ounce-  per  dozen,  with  quality  and  color  unobjectionable. 
The  color  of  the  shell  is  immaterial,  though  in  gome  markets 
the  white-shell  egg  and  in  others  the  brown-hell  coo  brings  the 
higher  price.  There  is  no  difference,  however,  in  quality 
betweel)  the  brown-shell  and  the  white-hell  egg. 

BREEDS  AND  LAYING  CAPACITY. 

.">  (a)    Laying  capacity    varies    greatly  among   individual   hens. 

6  i  Kef-.   .').   p.    117:    7.)      dins    has   been  discovered    by  the   use 

7  of  trap  nc-t-.     Experiment  station  records  show  that  hens  vary 

8  from  2i        ggs  per  year  to  no  egg-.     Frequently  a  good-look- 


View. 

ing  hen.  in  good  health,  will  not  pay  for  the  food  she  cats,  while  9 

another  hen  of  the  same  breed  and  with  (he  same  care  will  lay 
eggs  worth  three  or  four  times  the  cost  of  the  food.  Il  is  not 
known  that  there  is  a  type  or  shape  characteristic  of  heavy- 
laying  hens;  otherwise  it  would  he  an  easy  matter  to  rid  the 
Hock  of  the  unprofitable  fowls.  The  use  of  the  trap  nests  in- 
volves considerable  labor  in  releasing  the  hens  and  in  record 
keeping,  more  than  the  farmer  with  a  few  hens  can  profitably 
give,  but  he  should  endeavor  to  secure  "  pedigreed'1  males 
from  some  of  the  experiment  stations  or  from  reputable  private 
breeders  in  order  to  breed  up  the  laying  qualities  of  his  flock. 

(h)  There  is  more  difference  in  individuals   than  in  breeds,         10 
it  is  true,  but  the  smaller  breeds,  such  as  the  Leghorns,  are         11 
usually  the  most  profitable  for  egg"  production.     The  Leghorns        12 
should  lay  as  many  eggs  as  the  Plymouth  Rocks  and  breeds  of 
that  class  on  one-fourth  less  food.     (Ref.  5,  p.  159.)     But  the 
question  of  profit  does  not  hinge  on  egg  yield  alone.     In  renew- 
ing the  flock,  which  it  is  desirable  to  do  at  least  once  every  two 
years,  larger  returns  will  be  secured  from  the  sale  of  the  fowls         13 
of  the  larger  breeds  than  from  the  sale  of  the  Leghorns.     A 
Plymouth  Rock  hen  should  weigh  about  7^  pounds,  while  the 
Leghorn  will  weigh  about  half  as  much.     Selling  at  the  same 
price  per  pound,  the  Plymouth  Rock  should  bring  in  the  market 
a*   much  again  as  the  Leghorn.     This  will  about  balance  the 
difference  in  the  cost  of  feeding.     It  will  cost  more  to  raise  the 
Plymouth  Rock  to  laying  maturity  than  the  Leghorn,  but  this 
will  be  offset  by  the  increased  price  received  for  the  surplus 
cockerels  in  the  fall. 

Leghorns  are  poor  sitters,  and  eggs  should  not  be  trusted  to 
them  to  incubate.  For  this  reason  where  Leghorns  are  kept 
recourse  must  be  had  to  incubators  or  to  hens  of  sitting  breeds 
to  hatch  the  chicks.  Leghorns  are  active,  good  foragers,  and 
with  good  care  the  pullets  will  begin  to  lay  at  five  months  of 
age.  The  larger  breeds  are  usually  a  month  longer  in  beginning 
to  lay. 

Large  breeds,  such  as  Brahmas,  Cochins,  and  Langshans,  14 
should  not  be  kept  for  egg  production.  These  are  chiefly  used 
where  the  market  demands  a  large  chicken  for  table  purposes. 
In  most  markets,  however,  smaller  fowls  find  more  ready  sale. 
The  Brahmas  and  Cochins  have  meat  of  excellent  quality,  and 
being  of  a  quiet  disposition  are  fitted  for  the  economical  pro- 
duction of  meat. 

(c)  In  deciding  on  the  breed  to  keep  it  should  be  remembered 
that  the  larger  the  fowl  the  greater  will  be  the  demand  for  food 


for  maintenance  of  the  body,  and  that  eggs  arc  made  from  the 
food  consumed  above  that  required  for  maintenance.  The 
smaller  breeds,  requiring  It---  food  for  maintenance,  arc  able  to 
produce  eggs  at  a  -mallei-  cost  than  the  larger  breeds. 

The  individual  differences  in  fowls,  however,  are  30 
that  it  is  possible  to  find  fowls  of  the  iargei  a  that  will  lay 

more  eggs  than  some  fowls  of  the  -mailer  breeds.  On  the 
average  farm,  where  fowls  are  kept  principally  for  home  use, 
the  choice  of  a  medium-sized  breed,  such  as  the  Plymouth  Bock 
or  the  Wyandotte,  will  usually  be  wise. 

That  the  heavy  layers  are  not  confined  to  any    one   breed    has 
been  shown  by  laying  competition-   iii   Australia,   which  have 

15  extended  over  a  period  of  biz  year-,     hi  three  of  the  >ix  yean 

16  the    White    Leghorns    laid   the  most:   in   two  other  years  the 
1?        Silver  Wyandottes  won,  and  in  one  year  the  Black  Langshans 

stood  first.     The-*'  breeds  represent  the  three  different  clai 
of  fowls,  namely,  egg  breeds,  general-purpose  breeds,  and  meat 
breeds.     In  the  190&-7 contest  the  pen  of  Black  Langshans  laid 
an  average  of  247  eggs  per  fowl,  the  White  Leghorns  239,  and 
the  pen  of  Silver  Wyandotte-  1'.*.'  eggs  per  fowl. 

RENEWING  THE  FLOCK. 

The  limit  of  profitable  egg  production  is  probably  two  laying 
18  years.  (Ref.  5,  p.  164.)  After  the  second  year  the  egg  yield 
will  scarcely  pay  for  the  food  consumed  by  the  hen.  The  first 
or  pullet  year  is  the  most  productive,  and  though  the  egg*  laid 
the  second  ami  subsequent  years  are  larger  than  the  pullet  eg 
the  average  Hock  will  make  more  profit  the  first  year  than  in 
any  subsequent  year.  It  is  important,  therefore,  that  the  tioek 
be  renewed  at  least  once  every  two  years.  In  the  case  of  special 
breeding  stock,  or  of  hens  that  are  known  to  be  very  prolific, 
it  will  pay  to  keep  them  longer  for  breeding  purposes.  Where 
necessary  to  mark  the  fowls  to  keep  track  or  their  ages  it  may 
be  done  by  punching  the  web  of  the  foot  of  the  chick  when  it 
is  hatched.  A  Dumber  o\  different  markings  may  be  made  in 
this  way.  Where  fowls  are  kept  two  years,  it  will  be  sufficient 
to  mark  them  every  other  year  only.  A  punch  made  for  the 
purpose  may  be  purchased  of  poultry  supply  dealer-. 

HOUSING  OF  FOWLS. 

The  main  consideration  in  tin1  building  of  poultry    bouses  u 

the  health  of  the  fowls.  Fowl-  usually  show  more  vigor  on  the 
general  fawn  than  on  the  intensive  poultry  plant.  This  is  largely 
because  intensive   method^  are  not  followed  so  much  on  the 


Vie  w 


farm  as  on  the  poultry  plant  Highly  intensive  conditions  of 
housing  sooner  or  Inter  result  in  serious  impairment  of  the  con- 
stitutional vigor  of  the  fowls.     (Ref.  8.) 

Houses    may    be    divided  into  two    classes:    (1)  The    colony 
bouse,  and  (2)  the  stationary  house. 

THE  COLONY  HOUSE. 

The  colony  house  is  a  portable  house  that  will  accommodate  19 
anywhere  from  25  to  100  fowls  and  small  enough  to  be  pulled 
readily  by  a  team  of  horses.  It  is  not  desirable  to  keep  more 
than  100  fowls  in  a  colony  house.  A  house  7  feet  by  12  feet, 
if  properly  ventilated,  will  be  large  enough  for  50  fowls  in  the 
warmer  sections  of  the  country.  In  sections  where  the  weather 
conditions  in  winter  are  such  that  the  fowls  prefer  to  remain 
indoors  much  of  the  time,  it  will  pa}T  to  provide  additional  cheap 
scratching  room,  or  reduce  the  number  of  fowls  in  a  house.  It 
is  very  essential  that  the  house  should  provide  a  copious  supply 
of  fresh  air  at  all  times,  but  there  should  be  no  drafts  of  cold  20 
air  on  the  fowls  at  night.  A  low  temperature  is  not  neces- 
sarily- injurious,  but  extremes  of  heat  and  cold  should  be  21 
avoided.  The  danger  of  keeping  large  flocks  in  small,  close 
houses  lies  largely  in  the  difference  in  temperature  between  the 
air  of  the  house  at  night  and  the  outside  air.  The  house  is 
warmed  by  the  body  heat  of  the  fowls  at  night,  and  the  sudden  22 
change  of  temperature  to  which  the  fowls  are  exposed  when  let 
out  in  the  morning  is  frequently  the  cause  of  many  of  the  colds 
and  much  of  the  so-called  "roup"  in  the  average  flock.  On  the 
other  hand,  a  roomy  house  with  a  relatively  small  number  of 
fowls  in  it,  having  glass  windows  in  the  south,  will  have  a  high  23 
temperature  during  the  day  from  the  sun  shining  on  the  glass, 
while  at  night  there  will  be  a  sharp  fall  in  temperature,  chill- 
ing the  fowls  and  producing  colds.  There  should  be  no  great 
variation  of  temperature  in  the  house  between  night  and  day. 

The  most  practicable  wa}7  of  overcoming  this  difficulty  is  to  24 
leave  one  end  of  the  house  largely  open.  In  a  colony  house 
with  50  fowls,  the  space  usually  occupied  by  the  door  would  be 
left  open  night  and  day.  For  protection  from  wild  animals  a 
door  made  of  poultry  netting  can  be  used,  closing  it  at  night 
and  opening  it  in  the  morning.  In  sections  where  the  snow 
drifts  badly  the  door  may  be  covered  with  burlap  or  some  light 
fabric  that  will  admit  the  air  and  at  the  same  time  keep  the 
snow  out.  The  frame  of  the  house  may  be  2  by  4  stuff  covered  25 
with  siding.  In  place  of  siding  common  boards  with  battens 
over  the  cracks  may  be  used.     The  roof  may  be  of  shingles  or        26 


r* 


Js 


29 
30 
31 


of  a  good  quality  of  roofing  paper.  Experiments  at  the  I' tan 
Agricultural  E&xperimenl  Station  showed  good  results  with  the 
colony  open-front  bouse  during  cold  winters.  (Ref.  6,  p.  - 
The  body  warmth  <>t*  the  fowls  is  relied  upon  to  keep  the  tem- 
perature of  the  house  above  thai  of  outdoors,  and  at  the  same 
rime  the  cloth  window  or  curtain  front  admits  a  copious  supply 
of  fresh  air.  The  open  front  may  be  adapted  to  the  stationary 
house  as  well  as  to  the  colony  bouse. 

The  colony  bouses  should  be  kept  far  enough  apart  and 
moved  often  enough  to  give  the  fowls  clean,  fresh  ground  to 
range  over.  Not  more  than  one  breed  should  be  kept  on  the 
farm,  owing  to  danger  from  mixing. 

It  will  usually  be  an  advantage  to  have  the  nests  separate 
from  the  house.  Separate  nests  may  be  more  easily  kept  free 
from  lice  and  mites  than  nests  in  the  bouse.  The  California 
plan  is  to  have  a  small  laying  bouse  between  two  colony  hoi 
holding  about  LOO  fowls  each.  Where  fowls  are  kept  in  large 
numbers  the  plan  of  a  separate  laying  house  is  a  good  one. 
This  house  may  be  used  for  food  hoppers  as  well  a-  nests,  thus 
preventing  live  stock  from  getting  at  the  food. 

The  advantages  in  favor  of  the  colony-houe  m  are  d) 

that  it  avoids  largely  the  danger  from  soil  contamination,  or 
"ground  poisoning,"  which  will  almost  certainly  result  where 
fowls  are  confined  year  after  year  on  the  same  ground;  (l'i  it 
obviates  the  necessity  of  building  fences  where  large  numl 
are  kept:  and  (3)  it  simplifies  feeding,  inasmuch  as  the  fowls, 
having  fresh  ground  to  ranee  over,  secure  necessary  food  with 
which  the  farmer  docs  not  furnish  them,  either  through  neglect 
or  inability  to  secure  it. 


THE   STATIONARY  HOUSE, 


32 


The  long  stationary  house  is  usually  built  with  a  douhle  wall 
and  a  dead-air  space,  and  frequently  with  packing  between  the 
walls.  Glass  windows  are  usually  placed  on  the  south  side  of 
the  house.  It  is  impossible  to  keep  such  a  bouse  warm  during 
cold  weather  and  at  the  same  time  dry  without  artificial  heat. 
There  is  too  great  a  range  of  temperature  between  night  and 
day,  and  this  causes  moisture  to  condense  on  the  walls.  This 
condition  may  he  partially  remedied  by  taking  out  the  glass 
window  and  putting  a  frame  of  burlap  or  other  (doth  in  its  place. 
This  will  give  the  moisture  a  chance  to  escape  and  will  help  to 
equalize  the  temperature  between  night  and  day.  The  sun 
striking  through  the  glass  window  raises  the  temperature  many 
degrees,  and  at  night,  owing  to  the  glass  permitting  a  rapid 


!) 

escape  of  heat,  the  temperature  falls  to  9uch  a  point  that  con- 
densation takes  place.  A  board  shutter  over  t  he  window  at 
night  would  check  the  fall  of  temperature  in  the  house  and  to 

that  extent  prevent  condensation,  hut  in  the  warmly  built  house 
the  retention  of  heat  at  night  is  secured  at  a  sacrifice  of  pure 
air,  while  copious  ventilation  sacrifices  the  warmth  and  thus 
defeats  the  original  plan  of  the  house.  To  maintain  the  night 
temperature  and  also  prevent  dampness  in  the  closed  type  of 
house  it  is  necessary  to  heat  the  house  by  artificial  means,  hut 
artificial  heat  in  poultry  houses  has  not  proven  profitable. 

The  warmly  built  house  with  uiass  windows,  owing*  to  the 
humid  condition  of  the  air.  will  be  practically  as  cold  as  a  33 
single-hoarded  house  with  an  open  front  and  is  not  conducive  to 
good  health  and  best  egg  production.  Such  a  house,  with  glass 
windows  removed  and  cloth  frames  put  in  their  places,  will 
result  in  greater  comfort  for  the  fowls  and  better  production. 

It  is  very  essential  to  avoid  drafts  in  poultry  houses.  Drafts 
are  very  frequent  causes  of  colds  and  roupy  conditions  among  34 
fowls.  The  long  continuous  house  without  partitions  is  very 
objectionable  on  this  account.  Such  a  house  should  have  a 
tight  partition,  either  of  boards  or  of  cloth,  at  least  every  50  35 
feet,  better  every  25  feet.  Building  such  a  house  on  an  incline 
aggravates  the  trouble  from  .drafts. 

It  is  not  disputed  that  fowls  in  a  long  house  with  proper 
ventilation  kept  in  proper  sanitary  condition  and  with  yards 
will  give  good  results  in  egg  yield. 

Stationary  colon}T  houses  may  often  be  used  with  advantage 
in  place  of  a  long  house.  The}T  permit  of  a  better  arrangement 
of  yards.  A  convenient  arrangement  is  to  place  them  20  feet 
apart  and  have  two  yards  for  each  house.  By  cultivating  and 
growing  a  crop  on  every  alternate  yard  the  ground  may  be 
kept  cleaner  and  the  danger  of  contagious  diseases  spreading 
from  one  flock  to  another  will  he  greatly  minimized.  The 
vacant  yard  between  each  flock  also  obviates  the  trouble  of  fowls 
fighting  through  the  fences  and  injuring  themselves. 

THE  FEEDING  OF  FOWLS. 

In  the  feeding  of  poultr}T  on  the  farm  it  is  neither  practicable  36 
nor  desirable  to  compound  elaborate  rations.  Where  the  fowls 
have  the  liberty  of  the  fields  the  question  of  feeding  is  very 
much  simplified;  they  will  there  pick  up  a  large  proportion 
of  their  food.  If  the  farmer  were  to  confine  his  fowls  in  close 
yards  and  feed  them  the  way  he  usually  does  on  free  range,  the 
effect  would  be  a  poor  egg  yield  and  a  loss  of  vigor  in  the  fowls. 
33735—10 2 


10 


The  nearer  we  can  follow  nature's  teachings  in  the  feeding 
poultry  the  better  will  be  the  results.     No  set  rules  can  be  laid 
down  as  to  rations,  but  a  knowledge  of  some  of  the  general 
principles  <>t"  food-  and  feeding, will  help  the  poultryman  to 
a\  oid  mistakes. 

FOODS. 

Successful  feeding  of  poultry  rests  Largely  on  a  proper  com- 
bination of  foods  rather  than  on  any  single  food.  Then'  \& 
no  one  food  that  will  meet  all  requirements  of  the  fowl.  It 
is  not  a  question  of  wheat  or  corn  or  oats  so  much  as  it  is  a 
question  of  vegetable  or  animal  food,  or  again,  of  protein  or 
fats.  The  real  value  of  coin  or  wheat  has  never  been  fully 
determined.  The  chemical  composition  of  wheat  is  slightly 
better  than  that  of  corn  for  egg  production:  that  is,  it  con- 
tains more  protein  than  corn.  On  the  other  hand,  digestion 
experiments  now  in  progress  indicate  that  a  Larger  percentage 
of  the  corn  than  of  wheat  is  digested  or  made  use  of  by  fowls 
(Kef.  '.»).  but  neither  corn  nor  wheat  should  form  the  exclusive 
diet  of  the  fowls.  The  excess  of  fat-forming  material  is  not 
a  disadvantage  in  corn  if  it  he  fed  in  combination  with  some 
other  foods  rich  in  flesh-forming  or  egg-making  material.  If 
the  fowls  have  access  to  animal  food,  such  a-  meat  scraps  and 
the  insects  that  may  he  found  on  the  farm,  they  will  themselves 
correct  the  undue  proportion  of  fat-forming  (dements  in  the 
corn.      In  other  words,  the}'  will  balance  their  own   rations. 

The  feeding  of  poultry  is  not  a  question  altogether  of  balanced 
rations,  because  a  ration  maj  be  "balanced"  without  containing 
any  animal  food,  and  the  ration  must  contain  a  Large  proportion 
of  foods  of  animal  origin  for  good  results.  The  great  scarcity 
of  fresh  eo-<rs  in  winter  is  largely  due  to  a  scarcity  of  animal 
food  and  green  U'^d. 

There  is  a  close  agreement  between  the  food  consumed  and 
the  product,  whether  it  be  egg&  or  meat.  The  propel'  feeding 
of  poultry  necessitates  a  careful  study  of  the  composition  of 
foods,  as  well  as  of  the  product.     ( Kef.  10.) 


METHODS  OF  FEEDING. 

Method-  of  feeding,  as  well  as  rations,  vary  greatly.  Ajs 
already  indicated,  methods  that  would  be  successful  with  fowls 
on  free  range  would  not  be  satisfactory  for  fowls  confined  in 
small  yards.  Where  the  fowls  have  the  liberty  of  the  fields, 
which  usually  furnish  a  plentiful  supply  of  animal  food,  satis- 
factory results  will  be  secured  if  the  farmer  will  see  that  they 
have  a  liberal  supply  of  grain.      Corn  or  wheat  should  furnish 


11 


the  principal  grain  fed.  Whether  corn  or  wheat  be  fed  would 
depend  on  the  prices  of  these  grains.  So  far  as  is  now  known, 
the  feeding  value  of  these  grains  under  the  conditions  stated 
Would  be  about  equal.  The  farmer  can  rest  assured  that  he  is 
making  no  ven-  great  mistake  in  feeding  liberally  either  wheat 
or  corn  if  the  market  price  per  pound  is  the  same  for  each.  To 
mix  the  two  grains,  however,  will  be  an  advantage.  A  variety 
of  food  will  help  the  appetite.  Oats  are  also  excellent  for  laying 
fowls,  and  a  little  barley  by  way  of  variety  may  be  fed.  A  good 
quality  of  wheat  screenings  may  safely  be  substituted  for  higher- 
priced  grain. 

HOPPER  FEEDING. 

Tnder  the  conditions  of  the  free-range  system  the  hopper 
method  of  feeding  may  be  used  to  advantage.  It  will  make  a 
decided  saving  in  labor  and  insure  a  plentiful  supply  of  grain 
at  all  times  for  the  fowls.  The  hoppers  may  be  tilled  once  a 
week,  or  as  often  as  necessary,  and  placed  where  the  fowls  can 
help  themselves  at  will.  Dry  feeding  is  more  economical  in 
labor  than  wet  mash  feeding;  but  it  has  not  yet  been  clearly 
demonstrated  that  the  skillful  feeding  of  wet  mash  will  not  pro- 
duce better  results  in  egg  yield  than  the  dry  method.  (Refs.  11 
and  12.) 

EXERCISE. 

During  the  winter,  when  snow  lies  on  the  ground.  an}r  consid- 
erable length  of  time,  covering  up  a  large  proportion  of  nature's 
food,  different  methods  are  necessary  if  eggs  are  to  be  secured. 
In  the  first  place,  the  exercise  which  the  fowls  got  in  roaming- 
over  the  fields  will  have  to  be  provided  in  another  way.  Exer- 
cise is  just  as  necessary  as  the  food.  Access  to  a  straw  stack 
will  keep  the  hens  busy  scratching  for  the  stray  kernel.  A  pile 
of  clean  straw  on  the  floor  of  the  poultry  house  or  in  an  open 
shed  will  be  an  incentive  for  exercise  if  the  grain  is  scattered  in 
it.  It  is  not  necessaiy  nor  desirable  to  keep  the  hens  shut  up 
in  close  quarters  just  to  keep  them  from  getting  in  the  snow. 
The  eating  of  snow  is  not  detrimental  to  fowls.     (Ref.  13,  p.  28.) 

ANIMAL  FOOD. 

There  are  various  forms  in  which  animal  food  may  be  fed. 
Bones  and  meat  may  be  secured  from  the  butcher,  and  a  bone 
cutter  used  to  cut  them  up  into  small  pieces.  Horse  meat  may 
also  be  used,  and  on  account  of  its  comparative  freedom  from 
tuberculosis  it  is  safer  than  meat  from  the  butcher's  stalls. 
Skim  milk  is  a  good  substitute  for  animal  food,  but  it  has  the 


Vit  to. 


12 


disadvantage  of  being  bo  bulky  that  low  Is  ran  not  drink  enough 
of   it    t<>  Supply   tin'   need    for   animal    loud.       In  order  to   feed 
enough  milk  to  supply  a  largo  amount  of  animal  protein  ; 
better  to  feed  clabbered  milk,  or  milk  after  it  has  become  bout 

and    thick  and  the  whey  ha-   been  drawn   oil'.      Animal    food   i- 

very  largely  fed  in  the  form  of  dried-beef  scrap.  This  i-  man- 
ufactured by  tin-  large  packing  houses.  It  may  he  fed  in  hop- 
pers where  the  fowls  can  gel  it  at  any  time,  or  if  mash,  either 

dr\  or  wet.  he  \rA.  it  may  lie  mixed  with  the  mash.  About  8 
to  LO  percent  a-  much  dried-beef  scrap  as  total  -rain  should  he 
fed  laying  fowls.     <  Kef.  1 1. 1 

GREEN  FOOD. 

Green  food  may  be  fed  in  a  variety  of  form-.      Dry  or  g 
clover  or  alfalfa— preferably  the  leaves— kale,  cab 
beets,  and  mangels  are  all  good.  ■   Kale,  clover,  and  alfalfa  give 
od  color  to  the  yolk.     Beets  and  mangels  do  not.     Fowl* 
must  have  a  plentiful  supply  of  green  food  at  all  times. 

GRIT. 

It  is  well  to  keep  a  constant  supply  of  grit  before  poult 
all  ages,  unless  they  run  on  a  Boil  containing  plenty  of  grit. 
Gravel,  crushed  stone,   lime  mortar,  and   sharp  -and    are  all 
valuable  a-  grit. 

LIME. 

For  heavy  egg  production  the  ordinary  food-  do  not  contain 
enough  lime  for  the  making  of  shells.  Broken  oy-ter  si 
serve  this  purpose  well,  ami  where  they  may  he  secured  at 
reasonable  price  should  he  kept  before  the  laying  hens  at  all 
time-.  Lime  mortar  and  broken  limestone  will  also  furnish 
shell  material. 

POULTRY  IN  THE  ORCHARD. 

Poultry  may  often  with  advantage  he  kept  in  the  orchard. 
This  make-  it  possible  to  engage  in  poultry  keeping  on  a  con- 
siderable scale  without  any  co-t  for  land.  In  other  word-,  a 
double  u.-e  of  the  land  may  he  made.  The  tree-  afford  the 
necessary  -hade  to  the  fowl-  in  warm  weather.  It  will  he 
necessary  to  furnish  them  ample  green  \\nn{  at  all  time-,  espe- 
cially when  the  apple-  are  <>n  the  ground.  If  no  other  green 
food  i-  available  they  are  liable  to  eat  an  injurious  amount  of 
apph  -.  (  )n  the  other  hand,  poultry  are  a  decided  advantage  to 
the  orchard  as  an  aid  in  the  warfare  on   insect  enemies.     The 


colony  system  of  housing  the  fowls  should  be  used.  By  moving 
the  houses  frequently  the  fowls  may  always  be  kept  on  clean 
ground  and  the  droppings  will  be  distributed  over  the  orchard. 
Fifty  hens  on  an  acre  of  bearing  apple  orchard  will  keep  it  in  a 

high  state  of  fertility,  so  far  as  nitrogen  is  concerned. 

INCUBATION. 

Successful  incubation  of  chicks  lies  at  the  foundation  of 
successful  poultry  keeping.  The  necessity  of  frequently  re- 
newing the  Hock  makes  it  imperative  that  faulty  incubation 
methods  lie  avoided,  otherwise  loss  of  vigor  in  the  stock  will 
very  soon  result.  Cases  are  not  few  where  failure  in  the 
poultry  business  can  be  traced  directly  to  a  gradual  lowering  of 
vitalit}^  in  the  Mock  from  faulty  methods  of  incubation. 

BREEDING  STOCK. 

To  maintain    the  health   and  vigor  of  the   tiock   it  is   very 

essential   that  the    breeding  stock  be  of    strong  vitality.     No 

undersized  or  inferior  fowls  should  be  kept  in  the  tiock  from 

which  eggs  for    hatching  are   gathered.      Such    stock    is   not 

profitable  to  keep,  either  for  laying  or  for  breeding.     This  is 

important  whether  the  natural  or  artificial  method  of  incubation 

is  used. 

ARTIFICIAL  INCUBATION. 

Incubators,  though  they  are  largely  used,  have  not  been 
brought  to  that  state  of  perfection  in  which  they  can  be  said 
to  do  as  good  work  as  the  hen.  (Refs.  6,  19,  20.)  On  the 
farm  they  are  hardly  necessary.  Chicks  may  be  conveniently 
and  cheaply  raised  by  using  the  hen  for  hatching  and  brooding. 
There  is  still  a  missing  link  in  artificial  incubation,  and  it  is 
best  for  the  present  at  least  to  follow7  the  old  and  tried  way. 

NATURAL  INCUBATION. 

With  care  in  the  making  of  nests  and  the  management  of  the 
sitting  hens,  chicks  of  good  vigor  may  be  raised  in  large  num- 
bers. Where  it  is  desirable  to  set  a  large  number  of  hens, 
they  will  be  more  conveniently  looked  after  by  making  a  bank 
of  nests  and  placing  it  along  the  side  of  the  poultry  house  or  in 
some  unused  shed.  The  nests  may  be  about  12  by  12  by  11 
inches  in  size,  made  by  taking  two  12-inch  boards  for  the  top 
and  bottom,  and  cutting  another  12-inch  board  into  11-inch 
lengths  for  the  partitions,  then  nailing  them  together,  as  many 
as  desired.  The  top  of  the  bottom  row  will  furnish  the  bottom 
of  the  second  row,  and  four  or  five  rows  of  nests  may  thus  be 


14 


placed  together.  There  Bhould  b<*  a  li i n<r«**l  hoard  in  front  to 
confine  the  sitters.  The  hens  should  be  lei  out  every  day  to 
-I  and  *1  rink  for  about  fifteen  minutes,  the  length  of  time 
depending  on  the  weather  conditions.  Use  several  Inches  of 
fine  waste  hay  in  the  bottom  of  the  nests.  Short-cut  straw  or 
dean  chaff  will  also  answer  the  purpose.  Pyrethrum  powder 
or  tobacco  dust  should  be  used  on  the  fowls  and  in  the  nests 
two  or  three  times  during  the  period  of  incubation  to  keep  the 

lice  in  check.       If  lice  are  found  on  the  heads  and  throats  of  the 

chicks  two  or  three  days  after  batching,  lard  should  be  rubbed 

on  those  parts. 

Another  method  of  hen  batching  in  use  at  the  Oregon  Station 
is  to  use  one  coop  for  batching  a^  well  as  raising  the  chicks. 

This  coop  may  be  5  feet  long  and  3  feet  wide,  with  a  shed  roof 
3  feel  high  at  front  and  2  feet  at  hack.  This  is  large  enough  to 
divide  into  separate  apartment-  for  four  sitting  bens,  using 
movable  partitions.  These  partitions  are  of  canvas  or  burlap, 
with  a  4  or  6  inch  board  at  bottom.  An  outside  run  covered 
with  wir<>  netting  for  each  hen  gives  her  opportunity  for  exer- 

361  cise  and  dusting.  By  keeping  feed  and  water  in  the  run-  all 
the  time  the  hens  may  be  allowed  to  leave  the  nest  and  return 
at  will.  In  this  way  very  little  labor  is  required  in  caring  for 
sitting  hens.  This  house  serves  the  double  purpose  of  a  hatch- 
ing and  brooding  coop.  It  is  large  enough  for  the  chicks  to 
grow  to  maturity  in.  It  .should  be  moved  to  clean  ground  occa- 
sionally. 

After  hatching,  15  to  20  chicks  may  be  given  to  one  hen  and 
the^hen  confined  in  a  small  coop  for  a  few  days  till  the  chicks 

3?  are  strong  enough  to  follow  her.  The  bottom  of  the  coop 
should  be  covered  with  clean  sharp  sand  for  the  chicks  to  eat. 

FEEDING  THE  CHICKS. 

No  food  should  be  given  the  chicks  for  at   least   thirty-six 

38  hours  after  hatching,  the  yolk  which  the  chick  absorbs  before 

39  hatching  being  sufficient  to  sustain  life  for  three  or  four  days: 
too  early  feeding  will  cause  bowel  derangement.     (Ref.  11.) 

The  first  feed  may  be  rolled  oats  or  stale  bread  soaked  in 
milk,  and  the  milk  is  more  important  than  the  bread.  Skim 
milk  may  profitably  lie  kept  before  the  chicks  all  the  time  for 
drink.  A  little  hard-boiled  egg  and  the  milk  will  supply  the 
demand  for  animal  food  for  a  week  or  two.  If  the  hen  can  be 
turned  onto  free  range  when4  there  is  plenty  of  animal  food. 
green  food,  and  grit,  tin4  only  feeding  that  will  be  necessary 
will    be   to   keep  a  supply  of   cracked  corn  or  wheat  or  wheat 


15 


screenings  in  a  hopper  or  box  where  they  can  help  themselves 
at  will.  The  rapidity  of  growth  will  depend  largely  on  the 
amount  of  animal  food  whieh  the  chicks  find.  Without  the 
exercise  whieh  free  range  furnishes  the  chickens  they  should  be 
fed  their  grain  food  in  a  litter  of  straw,  chaff,  or  other  scratch- 
ing material  to  keep  them  busy.  This  litter  should  be  about 
10  inches  deep.  With  chickens  confined  in  yards  it  will  also  be 
necessary  to  feed  them  animal  food  and  grit.  A  hopper  of  beef 
scrap  and  one  of  grit  should  be  kept  where  the  chickens  can 
get  to  them  at  any  time.  A  chick  well  hatched  and  provided 
with  abundance  of  food,  free  range,  and  fresh-air  coops  will 
make  vigorous  growth  and  delight  the  owner  ;*  when  the  frost 
is  on  the  punkin." 

•FATTENING    CHICKENS. 

Young  cockerels  that  have  free  range  on  the  farm  possess  a 
good  frame  and  constitution,  but  they  lack  in  flesh  and  in  quality 
of  meat.  When  fed  in  pens  or  crates  for  two  or  three  weeks, 
the}'  gain  in  flesh  very  rapidly,  while  the  increase  in  the  bones 
or  frame  is  relatively  very  small.  Professor  Robertson  demon- 
strated by  experiment  that  one  fatted  chicken  had  as  much 
edible  material  on  its  frame  as  three  like  chickens  not  fatted. 
(Ref.  16.)  Young  cockerels  of  the  general-purpose  breeds,  2  to 
4  pounds  in  weight,  are  ver}T  economical  producers  of  meat 
when  confined  in  pens  and  fed  properly.  In  Professor  Robert- 
son's experiments  131  chickens  weighing  492  pounds  gained  in 
four  weeks  335  pounds.  The  cost  per  pound  of  gain  was  4.9 
cents.  This  represents  not  only  a  gain  in  weight,  but  a  gain  in 
quality,  and  the  market  will  pay  much  more  for  such  chickens 
than  for  those  direct  from  the  range.  From  lack  of  exercise 
the  muscles  become  more  edible  or  tender.  A  considerable 
business  in  fattening  or,  more  property,  fleshening  chickens  has 
growrn  up  in  several  western  States.  This  business  is  largely 
done  by  the  large  packing  companies,  who  buy  the  chickens 
from  the  farmers  and  fatten  them  at  fattening  stations.  This 
work  might  be  done  on  the  farm  and  the  profit  saved  to  the 
farmer.  There  is  probably  no  class  of  live  stock  that  will  pro- 
duce meat  at  less  food  cost  than  will  young  cockerels  of  the 
right  age,  and  no  other  kind  of  farm  animals  sell  at  as  high  a 
price  per  pound  as  chickens. 

RATIONS. 

W^hich  grain  to  use  in  fattening  will  be  governed  partly  by 
its  price.     For  best  results  the  grain  is  ground  and  fed  moist. 


View. 


16 


It  i-  usually  mixed  with  skim  milk  or  buttermilk.  Professor 
Graham,  of  the  Ontario  Agricultural  College,  says  t hut  the 
best  ration  used  at  that  station  i-  one  made  of  two  part-  finely 

mid  oat-,  two  <>f  finely  ground  buckwheat,  and  one  of  corn 
meal,  mixed  with  BOUT  milk,  using  one  and  a  halt*  time-  as  much 
milk  as  grain,  and  sometime-  twice  a-  much.  Where  the  mar- 
ket- demand  a  yellow-flesh  fowl,  a-  oiost  of  them  do  in  this 
country,  a  larger  proportion  of  corn  will  he  desirable  in  the 
ration;  but  corn  alone  will  prove  unsatisfactory.  Equal  parts 
of  ground  oats  and  corn  meal  Bhould  gn  e  good  results.  ( rround 
oats  alone,  with  the  coarser  hull-  removed,  will  give  good 
results  where  white  flesh  i-  not  discriminated  against.  Barley 
may  also  form  part  of  the  ration.  The  chickens  should  he  fed 
lightly  the  first  week:  after  that  all  they  will  eat  up  dean  three 
time-  a  day.  It  is  important  that  they  he  kept  quiet,  and  the 
sexes  should  be  separated.  After  three  weeks  of  feeding,  the 
chicken-  begin  to  lose  their  appetite-,  when  they  should  he 
marketed. 

PEN  AND  CRATE  FATTENING. 

The  relative  merits  of  pen  and  crate  feeding  have  not  been 
clearly  demonstrated.  In  experiments  conducted  at  the  Cana- 
dian Experimental  Farms  the  results  were  in  fa\or  of  the  pen 
method,  while  at  the  Ontario  station  the  results  were  in  favor 
of  crate  feeding.  (Refs.  15,  16.)  It  is  certain,  however,  that 
profitable  results  are  secured  from  pen  fattening,  and  it  is 
doubtful  whether  it  will  pay  the  farmer  to  adopt  the  crate 
method,  with  its  additional  labor  and  expense.  The  use  of  the 
cramming  machine  is  practicable  only  where  large  numbers  of 
chickens  are  U^\  and  where  expert  operators  are  available. 


CAPONIZING. 

40  Caponiziug  is  chiefly  valuable   in  supplying  the  demand  for 

high-cla--  roasting  chicken-  in  late1  winter  or  early  spring, 
when  unca-trated  male-  are  salable  only  at  low  prices.  'The 
capon  retains  its  good  eating  qualities  till  1<>  or  12  months 
of  age.  when  prices  are  good  for  such  stock.  Capons  are  very 
quite  or  docile  and  put  on  flesh  economically.  It  requires 
some  skill  to  perform  the  operation  of  caponiziug.  hut  instruc- 
tions accompany  each  set  of  instruments  purchased.  Unless 
the  farmer  possesses  the  necessary  -kill  or  can  engage  some  one 
who  ha-,  and  ha-  accommodations  for  keeping  the  capons  over 
winter,  it  will  pay  him  better  to  fatten  the  cockerel-  and  sell 
them  in  the  late  summer  or  fall. 


MARKETING  THE  PRODUCT. 

To  get  the  most  from  the  poultry  on  the  farm  some  attention 

must  be  given  to  methods  of  marketing  the  product.  It  will 
pay  the  farmer  to  cultivate  a  market  in  the  city  if  he  is  within 
reasonable  distance  of  it.  so  that  he  can  make  regular  ship- 
ments. Where  one  farmer  has  not  the  necessary  quantity  to 
make  shipments  a  little  cooperation  with  his  neighbors  would 
be  of  mutual  advantage.  To  secure  and  hold  a  select  trade  it 
will  be  necessary  to  give  attention  to  several  points  usually 
neglected  on  the  farm. 

MARKETING  EGGS. 

Eggs  van  in  color,  size,  flavor,  and  keeping  quality  just  as 
fruits  vary,  and  it  is  of  as  much  importance  that  the  poultry- 
man  grade  his  eggs  before  marketing  as  it  is  for  the  fruit 
grower  to  grade  his  fruit.  The  nests  in  which  the  eggs  ate 
laid  should  be  clean,  otherwise  the  eggs  will  lack  in  keeping 
quality.  The  germs  of  decomposition  enter  the  egg  through 
the  shell,  and  for  this  reason  eggs  laid  in  dirty  nests  will  dete- 
riorate in  quality  more  rapidly  than  eggs  laid  in  clean  nests. 
The  eggs  should  be  gathered  regularly  each  day,  and  broody 
hens  should  not  be  allowed  to  sit  on  them  any  length  of  time. 
The^  should  be  of  uniform  size  and  color.  Where  white  eggs 
are  demanded,  select  only  white  eggs,  or  keep  a  breed  of  fowls 
that  lay  white  eggs.  Those  off  in  size  and  color  should  be  dis- 
carded and  sold  in  the  local  market.  In  every  city  there  are 
reliable  grocery  stores  that  are  willing  to  pay  a  premium  for 
.regular  shipments  of  select  eggs.  It  is  possible  by  shipping- 
eggs  directly  to  the  consumer  to  get  higher  prices.  For  this 
purpose  special  crates  will  be  necessary.  These  may  be  similar  41 
in  construction  to  the  commercial  egg  crate  but  smaller,  the 
size  depending  somewhat  on  the  requirements  of  the  individual 
customer.  For  shipping  both  eggs  and  poultry  a  combination  42 
crate  may  be  used,  putting  eggs  in  one  end  and  dressed  poultry 
in  the  other.     (Ref.  17.) 

MARKETING  CHICKENS. 

In  selling  chickens  uniformity  of  product  as  well  as  quality 
should  be  considered.  A  crate  of  chickens  of  one  breed  and 
of  the  same  size  will  find  more  ready  buyers  than  a  pro- 
miscuous lot  of  different  sizes  and  different  color.  Whether  the  43 
farmer  ships  the  chickens  alive  or  dressed  will  depend  on  mar- 
ket requirements  and  prices.     In  catering  to  a  select  retail  trade, 


is 


44 


it  will  usually  in-  accessary  to  dress  them,  but  the  killing  and 
dressing  must  be  carefully  done,  otherwise  it  will  pay  better  to 
-hip  them  alive. 

KILLING   AND   DRESSING. 

Before  killing,  the  chickens  should  be  starved  about  twenty- 
four  hour-.  Food  remaining  in  the  crop  and  intestines  will 
injure  the  keeping  qualities  of  the  chicken  and  affect  Its  sale. 
The  most  approved  method  of  dressing  chickens  is  to  pluck 
them  dry.  They  should  be  killed  by  sticking  with  a  knife  in 
the  roof  of  the  mouth.  The  bird  is  suspended  by  the  legs,  and 
picking  begins  as  soon  as  the  "stick"  has  been  made.  It 
requires  some  skill  to  make  a  good  *4<tick.*'  If  picking  is  left 
till  the  bird  begins  to  get  cold,  the  feathers  will  be  removed 
with  difficulty.  The  chickens  arc  usually  undrawn,  and  tin-  head 
and  legs  are  left  on.  After  dressing,  the  animal  heat  >hould 
be  removed  as  quickly  as  possible,  when  they  should  be  packed. 
It  is  well,  however,  to  study  carefully  the  demands  of  the 
market  as  to  dressing,  as  the  requirement.^  vary  in  different 
markets.  It  should  be  remembered  always  that  cleanliness 
and  neatness  have  a  market  value  when  applied  to  dressing 
chicken-  and  packing  them  for  shipment. 

INSECT    PESTS. 

Insect  pests  are  a  cause  of  considerable  losses  in  poultry 
keeping.  It  is  useless  to  expect  profit  from  the  fowls  where 
no  attention  i-  given  to  combating  lice  and  mites.  Where  the 
fowls  have  acces>  to  dust  baths  they  will  keep  themselves  com-' 
paratively  free  from  lice,  but  a  dusting  occasionally  with  insect 
powder  or  tobacco  dust  may  be  necessary.  The  mites,  which  are 
sucking  insects,  require  different  treatment.  They  are  found 
usually  in  the  nests  and  on  the  roost  poles.  The  roosts  and 
nests  should  be  frequently  examined,  and  when  the  mites  are 
found,  spraying  with  kerosene,  or  some  effective  spray,  should 
be  resorted  t<»  every  three  or  four  days.  Fumigating  the  hou>e 
with  sulphur,  where  it  is  possible  to  close  the  house  up  tight. 
is  also  effective.  One  spraying  or  one  fumigation,  however,  i^ 
not  enough,  because  the  eg^rs  of  the  mites  will  not  be  killed, 
and  in  a  few  days  a  fresh  crop  of  mites  will  hatch,  and  spray- 
ing should  be  repeated  to  kill  successive  broods.      (Kefs.  18,21.) 


APPENDIX. 


LANTERN    SLIDES 


No.  of 
view. 


:*. 


9. 


10. 


11. 

12. 
13. 


14. 
15. 


The  beginning. 

Original. 

Flock  of   young  White  Plymouth 

Rocks.    Indiana. 
Part  of   poultry  plant   at   Cornell 
University,    showing    gasoline- 
heated  brooders. 
Utah  Agricultural  College  Experi- 
ment Station  poultry  houses. 
Utah   Station   trap  nest  (original), 
front  view. 
The    door    is    so   balanced   that    the 
weight  of  the  hen    as  she    enters 
closes  it  and  confines  her  until  re- 
leased. 

Utah  Station    trap  nests,  another 

view. 
View   of  two   Maine   Experiment 
Station  hens,  showing  eggs  laid 
by  each  in  one  year. 
Utah    Experiment    Station   fowls, 
with  egg  records  of  each. 
Hen  No.  5  laid  398  eggs  in  2  years;  No. 
26,  385;  No.  129,  200  in  4  years;  No. 
131,  442  in  2  years,  and  677  in  4  years. 
Original. 

Utah  Experiment  Station  fowls. 
All  good  layers.    Hen  No.  10  laid  199 
eggs  in  1  year:  her  daughter.  No. 
170,  laid  201  eggs  in  1  year;  No.  361 
laid  242  in  1  year.    Original. 

A  lesson  in  poultry  breeding. 

("tali  Station  hen,  daughter,  and 
granddaughter.  Record  of  hen,  190 
eggs:  of  daughter,  226;  and  of  grand 
daughter,  240.    Original. 

A  Leghorn  pullet. 

A  good  specimen  of  the  breed. 

White  Plymouth  Rocks.     Indiana. 

White  Wyandotte  pullet,   owned 

by  Utah  Experiment  Station. 

Record,  204  eggs.    Original. 

Light  Brahma  pullet. 
Original. 

Pen  of  Black  Langshans,  winners 
in  Australian  laying  competi- 
tion, 1906-7,  at  Hawkesburv 
Agricultural  College. 


No.  of 

view. 

16. 
17. 
18. 


19. 


20. 
21. 

22. 

23. 
24. 


25. 
26. 
27. 

28. 

29. 

30. 
31. 


Pen  of   White   Leghorns;   second 

pen  in  laying  competition. 
Pen  of  Silver  Wyandottes;  among 

the  winners. 
Showing  the  necessity  of  frequently 
renewing  the  flock. 
( Original.    The  laying  flock  should  be 
frequently   renewed.    The  baskets 
represent  number  of  eggs  produced 
in  experiments  at  Utah  by  pullets, 
hens  1  year  old,  and  old  hens,  be- 
yond what  were  sufficient  to  pay 
for  the  food  eaten. 

A    California   colony    house   with 
fences  to  keep  live  stock  out  of 
feed  hoppers. 
Originial. 

A  Rhode  Island  colony  house. 
A  Rhode  Island  colony  house  sho  w- 
iug  fences  around  feed. 

California  colony  houses. 
Original. 

Tolman  fresh-air  house. 
Utah   Station  colony  house   with 
cloth  window. 
Gave   good   results  in    cold  winter. 
Original. 

Same  house  showing  how  nests  may 
be  arranged. 

Original. 

Colony  house,  Oregon  Agricultural 
College. 

Original. 

Colony  house,  framework,  Oregon 
Agricultural  College. 
Original. 

A  California  poultry  farm,  where 
8,000  laying  hens  are  kept. 

Houses  scattered  over  the  hills. 

California  colony  houses  showing 
trough  for  wet  mash. 
Original. 

A  California  open-front  house. 

Original. 

A    colony  house    with   open-front 
scratching  shed  attached. 
Original. 


32.       A  curtained-front  house. 


(19) 


20 


86. 


Mi. 


Mi 


3 


88. 


Interior  \  ien  of  one  pen  ol  -aim* 
house  -how  Ing  curtain  open. 

\   warmly  built  house  \\  ith  g 
window b;  doI  conducive  to 
health. 

v  long  contii ut  house  without 

partitions. 

tionable  on  account  of  draft. 
Building  mi  an  Incline  aggravates 
the  trouble.    Original. 

Single  .-mail  houses  placed  a  dis- 
tance apart  permit  of  \\  ide  yards 
and  easy  culth  ation. 
Original. 

\  combination  hen-hatching  and 
brooding  coop. 

liial. 

A  convenient  brood  coop  for  ben 

and  chicks. 
A  Rhode  [eland  coop  for  hen  and 

chicks. 


No  ..i 

vi.'\v 

'■V.I.       Movable  colony  coops  at  thi 
gon  Experiment  station. 
By  using  a  lamp  and  hover  chick-  an 
artificially  l.ro<Mlf<|  in  tin  — 

lire  a  1-"  used  for  hatching  by 
By  putting  in  parti tioi 
hens  are  set  in  each  house  and  the 
chid  I    in    them.    Till- 

ed'.; ,  i  in  vjZt.. 

40.  I  >ress<  d  capons  showing  distinctive 

manner  of  dressing. 

41.  Small    crate    for   shipping  egga  to 

special  customi 

42.  A  combination  crate  for  shipping 

dressed  poultry  ai 
In  shipping  a  distance  during  warn 

weather  ice  i~  ;.. 

43.  A  uniform  lot  of  well  fattened  and 

properly  dressed  tow  Is 

44.  Neatness  in  dressing  lias  a  market 

value. 
Two  Wyandotte  cockerels,  16  w 


old.  weighing  9  pounds  in  oi 

REFERENCES. 

1.  Twelfth  l".  s.  Census,  A-riculture,  Part  I. 

2.  Yearbook,  Department  of  Agriculture,  1908. 

3.  Special  Reports  of  the  Census  Office,  Mines  and  Quarries,  P>02. 

4.  North  Carolina  Experiment  Station  Bulletin  167. 
.">.   Utah  Experiment  Station  Bulletin  92. 

6.  I  tali  Experiment  Station  Bulletin  102. 

7.  Maine  Experiment  Station  Bulletins  64,  79,93. 

8.  Oregon  Experiment  Station  Bulletin  96. 

'».   I'.  s.  Department  of  Agriculture,  Biochemic  Division,  Bureau  of  Animal  Indus- 
try Bulletin 

10.  California  Experiment  Station  Bulletin  164. 

11.  Main.'  Experiment  Station  Bulletins  130.  144. 

12.  New  York  Cornell  Experiment  Station  Bulletin  249. 

13.  Connecticut  Storrs  Experiment  station  Bulletin  44. 

14.  New  York  state  Experiment  station  Bulletin  149. 

15.  Ontario  Agricultural  College  Bulletin  151. 

16.  Canada  Experimental  Farms  Report  1902,  p.  226. 

17.  New  York  Cornell  Experiment  Station  Bulletin  248. 

18.  Iowa  Experiment  station  Bulletin  69. 

\\k  Ontario  Agricultural  College  Bulletin  if,:;. 

20.  Oregon  Experiment  station  Bulletin  Mm. 

21.  C.  s.  Department  of  Agriculture,  Bureau  of  Entomology  Circular  92. 

Some  other  book*  mid  bulletins  >>>>  poultry  keeping. 
The  Poultry  Book.      New   York. 
Farm  Poultry.     By  G.  C.  Watson.     New  York. 
Poultry  Craft.     By  John  II.  Robinson.     Boston. 

Report  on  the  Poultry  Industry  in  America.     By  Edward  Brown,  F.  !..  S.      London. 
U.S.  Department  of  Agriculture,  Fanners'  Bulletins  51,  128,  S 
Progressive  Poultry  Culture.      By  A.  A.  Brigham.     Brooking-.  S.  I>ak. 
Oregon  Agricultural  College  Extension  Bulletin  2  on  Housing  of  Chickens, 
■n  Agricultural  College  Extension  Bulletin  4  on  Feeding  for  I  - 


